Vanansio Samson, the father of 27-year-old Emanuel Kidega Samson, who fatally shot a beloved mother and wounded six others at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch, Tennessee in 2017, said he begged police to take his son’s guns before the tragedy.

For decades I had wanted to go, not so much as a tourist, but as a pilgrim. Friends had come home from the Holy Land with stories about how their faith had blossomed at the Garden Tomb or strengthened at the Sea of Galilee.

I started to feel overwhelmed all the time. Then, I started to feel like a failure. I started to feel trapped in my skin and in the house. I would cry and ask God to take my life. I just got worse and worse and worse.

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As marriage continues to decline amid divorce, cohabitation and rampant “casual sex,” a Texas pastor is encouraging cohabiting singles to marry — and the church will pay for everything, from the rings to the wedding cake.